I adore cherries. When we lived down South in the late Spring, early summer, you would often see cherry sellers at the side of the road plying their wares. They would come over from France and set up shop on large trestle tables, selling them in 1 kilo brown paper bags. If you have ever eaten a cherry from a brown paper bag on a warm spring/summer day you have tasted a little bit of heaven.
I would always buy two bags. One to eat in the car on the way home and one for later on. They were soooooo good! None ever got made into pies. We were too busy eating them out of hand!
This recipe I am sharing today makes use of the frozen cherries you can buy in the freezer section of the shops. I usually have a container or two in the freezer. They come in very handy for things like this fabulous tray bake.
It is actually a different version of my Apple Crumble Tray Bake. (Oh so good also.) I decided to try the same recipe using cherries instead of apples, with brilliant results!
If you like apples more than cherries, by all means make the apple version, but if you are as fond of cherries as I am, you are going to fall in love with the cherry version!
You have a buttery, crumbly shortbread type of cake base . . .
Topped with a layer of raspberry jam and a sweet cherry filling . . .
With a buttery crumble topping . . . what's not to love about this!
These are fabulous. You can either drizzle with a lemon drizzle icing, or opt to dust lightly with icing sugar as I have done. Either way you are sure to enjoy!
Yield: Makes one 8-inch square pan
Cherry Crumble Tray Bake
prep time: 10 minscook time: 40 minstotal time: 50 mins
Delicious cherry bars with a shortbread type base, a layer of raspberry jam, a sweet cherry filling and a moreishly butter topping. Glaze or not as desired.
ingredients:
For the base:
187g of plain flour (1 1/3 cups)
2 TBS granulated sugar
1 tsp salt
4 ounces unsalted butter, at room temperature (1/2 cup)
For the filling:
225g frozen cherries (1 cup)
5 TBS granulated sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
dash each of ground cardamom and freshly grated nutmeg
2 tsp corn flour (corn starch)
2 TBS lemon juice
2 heaped dessertspoons of raspberry jam (about 1/4 cup)
For the topping:
70g plain flour
3 TBS granulated sugar
4 TBS unsalted butter, softened
pinch each salt, cinnamon, cardamom and nutmeg
instructions:
Preheat
the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter an 8 inch square baking
pan. Line with baking paper, leaving an overhang. Butter the paper.
Set aside.
the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter an 8 inch square baking
pan. Line with baking paper, leaving an overhang. Butter the paper.
Set aside.
Sift the flour for the base into a
bowl. Whisk in the sugar and salt. Drop in the butter and rub it in
with your finger tips until you have a mixture resembling bread crumbs.
bowl. Whisk in the sugar and salt. Drop in the butter and rub it in
with your finger tips until you have a mixture resembling bread crumbs.
Press this evenly into the prepared pan, pressing down firmly. Bake for 10 to 13 minutes, until lightly brown around the edges.
To
make the filling, put the cherries into a skillet along with the sugar
and spices. Cover over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the
cherries are tender, but still holding their shape. Whisk together the
corn flour and lemon juice. Stir this into the cherry mixture. Cook
and stir until the mixture thickens. Remove from the heat and set aside
to cool.
make the filling, put the cherries into a skillet along with the sugar
and spices. Cover over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the
cherries are tender, but still holding their shape. Whisk together the
corn flour and lemon juice. Stir this into the cherry mixture. Cook
and stir until the mixture thickens. Remove from the heat and set aside
to cool.
Make the crumble topping by whisking
the flour, sugar and spices together in a small bowl. Rub the butter in
with your fingers until you get a clumpy mixture.
the flour, sugar and spices together in a small bowl. Rub the butter in
with your fingers until you get a clumpy mixture.
After
the initial baking of the crust, remove it from the oven. Loosen the
jam with a fork and then spread it evenly over the hot base. Top with
the cherry filling. (I use my hands to spread it out evenly) Top with
the crumble topping, scattering it evenly over top. Bake for 25 to 30
minutes until golden brown. Allow to cool completely in the pan before
lifting out and cutting into squares to serve.
the initial baking of the crust, remove it from the oven. Loosen the
jam with a fork and then spread it evenly over the hot base. Top with
the cherry filling. (I use my hands to spread it out evenly) Top with
the crumble topping, scattering it evenly over top. Bake for 25 to 30
minutes until golden brown. Allow to cool completely in the pan before
lifting out and cutting into squares to serve.
An
optional glaze can be made by whisking together 65g (1/2 cup) of icing
sugar and enough lemon juice to give you a smooth and drizzable mixture.
Drizzle this decoratively over top of the cherry bake and allow to set
prior to cutting.
optional glaze can be made by whisking together 65g (1/2 cup) of icing
sugar and enough lemon juice to give you a smooth and drizzable mixture.
Drizzle this decoratively over top of the cherry bake and allow to set
prior to cutting.
Note - Alternately you can just give them a light dusting of icing sugar.
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Did you tune into the latest Royal Wedding yesterday? I did and thought Eugenie was a beautiful bride. She and her husband make a lovely couple and are very clearly in love with each other. I love it when that happens. I wish them many, many years of happiness together! Bon Appetit and Bon Weekend!
Tuna wasn't something we ever had when I was growing up. My first experience with it was when I was about 14 years old. I was in Band at school and we had our practises during the lunch hour. I remember sitting in the band room and my friend had a tuna sandwich for her lunch that her mother had made. She wasn't too impressed with it and asked if I would like to exchange sandwiches with her. I said why not!
I couldn't begin to tell you what kind of sandwich I had in my own lunch but I have never forgotten how delicious her tuna sandwich was. To this day it lives on in my memory as one of my favourite tastes of all time!
I think I may have talked my mother into buying tuna after that, I'm not sure. I do know that tinned tuna fish was a staple in my store cupboard when I was raising my own family, and it still is.
I was buying tuna in the grocery store one day, many moons ago and an old Italian woman told me only to always buy albacore tuna. All the rest was garbage she said. Who was I to argue with Italian wisdom. I reckon they know their tuna fish. She also told me that blunt ended carrots were sweeter.
In any case, ever since then, I have only ever bought albacore tuna fish and blunt ended carrots, and I have to say she was correct. Albacore tuna is the best and blunt ended carrots are sweeter!
The tuna in this tuna melt is flavoured with a mixture of mayonnaise and basil pesto. If you have fresh homemade pesto, so much the better.
There is also some garlic, and seasoning in the tuna mixture, along with grated Parmesan cheese. Do be judicious with the salt as Parmesan cheese on its own is rather salty, but I always like to add a hefty bit of black pepper as I really like black pepper.
I like knife and fork, open faced sandwiches. These can also be done as a closed sandwich very easily by using two slices of buttered bread. I like them open faced and I add a couple slices of ripe tomato to the tops as well. You can also put slices of tomato in a closed sandwich if you want, or you can leave the tomato out altogether. I sometimes add chopped olives to my tuna. Its all good.
A slice of melty mozzarella goes on top of the bottom buttered slice of bread, then the tuna, then the tomatoes and then another slice of mozzarella. I like the melting properties of Mozzarella, but Gouda also works really well as does Swiss. Just make sure it is a smooth melting kind of cheese.
Toast the bread bottoms in a warm frying pan. Don't be too much in a rush to do this. I find medium low heat best, and you get a nice crispness to the bread. After that's done, pop the whole bit under a grill to really melt that cheese and gild the lily. YUMMY!!!
Yield: 2
Parmesan Pesto Tuna Melts
prep time: 5 minscook time: 5 minstotal time: 10 mins
A quick, easy and delicious open faced tuna melt sandwich that everyone is sure to enjoy. You can easily double the recipe ingredients to serve four people.
ingredients:
1 (145g) tin of albacore tuna, drained and flaked (1 5-oz tin)
2 TBS good quality mayonnaise
2 TBS prepared basil pesto
45g grated Parmesan cheese (1/4 cup)
1 small clove garlic, peeled and minced
salt and black pepper to taste
2 thick slices of a sturdy type of bread
softened butter to spread
ripe tomato slices
4 slices mozzarella cheese
instructions:
Flake the tuna into a bowl. Stir in the mayonnaise,
pesto, parmesan cheese and garlic. Season to taste with salt and black
pepper. Set aside.
pesto, parmesan cheese and garlic. Season to taste with salt and black
pepper. Set aside.
Heat the oven grill to high.
Butter
one side of each slice of bread. Put the bread slices, butter side
down, into a large skillet, which you have warmed. Place a slice of
cheese on each. Divide the Tuna mixture between both slices of cheese
covered bread, evenly. Top each with several slices of tomato and then
another slice of mozzarella cheese. Cook until the bottom of the slices
of bread have turned golden brown. Flash the pan under the heated oven
grill for a couple of minutes, long enough to melt the cheese, and gild
it in a few places. Remove from the grill and serve immediately.
one side of each slice of bread. Put the bread slices, butter side
down, into a large skillet, which you have warmed. Place a slice of
cheese on each. Divide the Tuna mixture between both slices of cheese
covered bread, evenly. Top each with several slices of tomato and then
another slice of mozzarella cheese. Cook until the bottom of the slices
of bread have turned golden brown. Flash the pan under the heated oven
grill for a couple of minutes, long enough to melt the cheese, and gild
it in a few places. Remove from the grill and serve immediately.
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Boy I am really missing my Instagram. Not so much the facebook. I wasn't really that active on facebook anyways, except for my recipe page, but I love my Instagram and my friends on there. Only 6 days left to go. In the meantime, I am catching up on a few other things. I hope you will make the sandwich and enjoy! Bon Appetit!
We don't eat red meat very often in our home. It is a rare treat for us, so when we do, I want to make sure that I prepare it in as best a way as I can.
We were having company for lunch the other day and I decided to cook some pork chops that I had bought at Costco.
They were lovely, thick bone-in loin chops. I had not seen chops that thick in a long time.
I think they were about 1 1/2 inches thick. I was a bit concerned as to how I was going to cook them adequately without drying them out.
I decided that I would try brining them.
Brining is simply a food process where meats and poultry are soaked in a salt/sugar brine for a time prior to cooking them, which not only lightly seasons them but helps to tenderise and enhance the flavour of the meat.
People have been brining chickens and turkeys for years.
I created a simple brine of water, apple juice, salt and herbs.
I soaked the pork chops in this mixture, covered in the refrigerator overnight, for about 18 hours actually by the time I went to cook them. 12 hours minimum is desirable.
At the end of that time, I took them out of the brine, rinsed them off and patted them dry, discarding the brine.
I always slash the fatty edge of my chops prior to cooking them, right through the fat to the meat.
This helps to prevent them from curling up as they are cooking, and makes for a much more attractive presentation.
I seasoned them all over with some garlic powder (NOT salt), a tiny bit of salt, some freshly ground black pepper, and dried sage.
Sage and pork go very well together.
I lined a baking tray (with sides) with some heavy foil and then popped the chops onto the tray.
I sprinkled each chop with some fine dry bread crumbs and dotted them with butter, then popped them into a hot oven.
I cooked them for about 15 minutes, then took them out of the oven and poured a bit of fruit juice around them in the pan.
I used apple juice because that is what I had, but any fruit juice would work. I have used cranberry in the past, as well as orange and pineapple. All work very well.
Back into the oven they went for a further half an hour. I checked them periodically to make sure the fruit juice wasn't cooking dry.
The juice helps to keep them moist as well as adding additional flavour and helps to increase their tenderness even more.
This is a trick I learnt from one of my mother's old meat cookery books that she bought back in the 1950's when she first got married. It works, and is delicious.
The end result was perfectly cooked chops, that were indeed very tender, moist and delicious! They went down a real treat!
I had actually cooked 6 at the time, and what you are seeing here is the two leftover ones gently reheated the day after. Still succulent, tender and delicious.
Yield: 4
Brined & Breaded Baked Pork Chops
prep time: 12 hourcook time: 45 minstotal time: 12 hours and 45 mins
I recently bought some really thick chops at Costco and wanted to cook them in such a way as I did not dry them out. I decided to brine them first. It worked like a charm. We had delicious tender and flavourful chops! Plan ahead as the chops need to brine overnight.
ingredients:
For the Brine:
3 TBS non-iodised salt
2 cups water
2 cups apple juice
1 TBS mixed herbs
For the chops:
4 bone in thick pork chops
salt, pepper, dried sage and garlic powder
2 TBS fine dry bread crumbs per chop
butter to dot
apple juice (other fruit juices also work well, like pineapple, cranberry or orange)instructions:
Heat the water and salt until the salt dissolves.
Stir in the apple juice and mixed herbs. (I used a mix of sage, parsley,
and summer savoury) Once the mixture is room temperature, put it into a
plastic container large enough to hold the chops in a single layer,
with a lid. Put in the chops, cover and refrigerate overnight or for at
least 12 hours.
Stir in the apple juice and mixed herbs. (I used a mix of sage, parsley,
and summer savoury) Once the mixture is room temperature, put it into a
plastic container large enough to hold the chops in a single layer,
with a lid. Put in the chops, cover and refrigerate overnight or for at
least 12 hours.
When you are ready to
cook the chops take them out of the brine, rinse them off and pat dry.
Slash the fatty edge at 1/2 inch intervals. This helps to keep them
from curling up when they are cooking. Season each all over with salt,
pepper, dried sage and garlic powder.
cook the chops take them out of the brine, rinse them off and pat dry.
Slash the fatty edge at 1/2 inch intervals. This helps to keep them
from curling up when they are cooking. Season each all over with salt,
pepper, dried sage and garlic powder.
Preheat
the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Line a baking tray with sides with
heavy duty aluminium foil. (Do NOT skip this. It saves on cleanup after.)
Place the seasoned chops on the baking sheet in a single layer. Top
each with 2 TBS fine dry bread crumbs. Dot with butter. Bake for about
15 minutes. Remove from the oven. Pour a quantity of fruit juice around
the chops and return to the oven. (about 1/4 inch in depth) Bake for a
further 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown and the juices run clear.
Check periodically to see that the apple juice doesn't run dry, topping
it up as needed. Serve hot with your favourite side dishes and
vegetables.
the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Line a baking tray with sides with
heavy duty aluminium foil. (Do NOT skip this. It saves on cleanup after.)
Place the seasoned chops on the baking sheet in a single layer. Top
each with 2 TBS fine dry bread crumbs. Dot with butter. Bake for about
15 minutes. Remove from the oven. Pour a quantity of fruit juice around
the chops and return to the oven. (about 1/4 inch in depth) Bake for a
further 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown and the juices run clear.
Check periodically to see that the apple juice doesn't run dry, topping
it up as needed. Serve hot with your favourite side dishes and
vegetables.
Note - Cook time depends on the thickness of your chops. Mine were about 1 1/2 inch thick. A thinner chop would not need as much time to cook, so judge according. Bone in chops work best.
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Pork Chops and applesauce are a marriage made in heaven! Bon Appetit!
This is an old, old recipe copied into my Big Blue Binder from an old community cookbook from back home in Nova Scotia. I don't know who it is accredited to originally, only that it is a delicious way to prepare cabbage.
It uses fairly simple ingredients that most people have in their homes, with the exception of the Garam Masala, but I am fairly certain that if you don't have the Garam Masala in your home, you would have at least the ingredients to make your own. Garam Masala is deliciously aromatic mix of spices used to bring flavour and warmth to many Indian dishes, so no worries about making it as if you are a person who loves curries, you are sure to use it up. I have included below the recipe and instructions to make your own. The spices themselves smell heavenly when they are toasting. Its a very simple make.
Garam Masala
prep time: 3 minscook time: 3 minstotal time: 6 mins
An Indian Spice mix for use in East Indian cookery.
ingredients:
2 TBS coriander seed
1 TBS cumin seed
2 tsp black peppercorn
1/2 cinnamon stick (or 2 tsp ground cinnamon)
1/2 tsp cardamon seeds (from about 20 cardamom pods)
1 tsp fennel seed
1/2 tsp whole cloves
2 dried bay leaves
instructions:
Toasting the seeds is the secret to a well flavoured Garam Masala. Don't
be tempted to skip this step. Toast the whole spices in a dry frying
pan until they are very fragrant and a shade or two darker. Tip into a
spice grinder and grind to a powder. Alternately you can use a pestle
and mortar. (Labour intensive but it works) Store in an airtight
container in a dark place for up to six months.
be tempted to skip this step. Toast the whole spices in a dry frying
pan until they are very fragrant and a shade or two darker. Tip into a
spice grinder and grind to a powder. Alternately you can use a pestle
and mortar. (Labour intensive but it works) Store in an airtight
container in a dark place for up to six months.
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So is this dish. The hardest and most labour intensive part is the shredding of the cabbage. I like to use white cabbage for this as it lends itself beautifully to the long cook time and I prefer the melting, almost buttery texture of it when it is done.
You can use whatever cabbage you prefer however I cannot speak for the results as I have only ever used hard white cabbage, which I believe is one of the most common ones in the shops and readily available everywhere.
It makes a great Indian side dish when you are cooking an Indian meal. You can make it ahead of time and just heat it up at the last minute. Leftovers are lovely stirred through cooked rice and reheated. (Just saying.)
I have found it to also be a very popular dish at a covered dish or pot luck supper. Amazingly (or maybe not amazingly) everyone seems to love it.
I am not sure how authentically Indian it is, probably not very, but that doesn't really matter as it is fabulously tasty!
It is also delicious mixed into leftover fried potatoes. (Again just saying.)
Yield: 4 - 6
Indian Spiced Cabbage
prep time: 10 minscook time: 2 hourtotal time: 2 hours and 10 mins
A deliciously spiced side dish with East Indian flavours. I could eat a whole bowlful of this and nothing else.
ingredients:
1 medium head green cabbage, shredded finely
1/3 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
2 tsp mild chili powder
2 tsp garam masala (store bought or make your own, preferable)
2 tsp black pepper
sunflower oil
instructions:
In a large pot,heat oil to cover the bottom (1/4
inch deep) until it begins to shimmer. Add the cumin seeds and cook for
about 30 seconds until it begins to pop and smell fragrant. Add the
remaining spices, seasonings and the cabbage, tossing to coat the
cabbage in the spice/oil mixture. Cover and cook gently, over very low
heat, for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until the cabbage is meltingly tender. Serve
hot.
inch deep) until it begins to shimmer. Add the cumin seeds and cook for
about 30 seconds until it begins to pop and smell fragrant. Add the
remaining spices, seasonings and the cabbage, tossing to coat the
cabbage in the spice/oil mixture. Cover and cook gently, over very low
heat, for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until the cabbage is meltingly tender. Serve
hot.
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I cooked only half a recipe today and found myself wondering why I had not cooked the whole cabbage, its just so very, very good. I hope you will try it and enjoy it as much as we do! Bon Appetit!
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